Jutanugarn’s victory among most dominant ever at Women’s Open

Ariya Jutanugarn’s June playoff victory in the 2018 U.S. Women’s Open ranks among the 20 most dominant performances in the event’s more than 70 year history.

Jutanugarn, who is from Thailand, compiled a Z Score of -2.56 in defeating South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim on the fourth hole of their playoff. It was Jutanugarn’s second major victory; she also won the 2016 British Open.

Her -2.56 Z score ranks in a three-way tie for 14th best in the history of the Women’s Open. Others who compiled a -2.56 Z Score were Louise Suggs in 1949 and Karrie Webb in 2000. Jutanugarn’s performance was the best in a Women’ Open since 2013, when Inbee Park won with a -2.77 Z Score.

As good as Jutanugarn’s performance was, it might have been better. She began the final nine holes at -16, holding a seven-stroke lead. Had she shot even par on the final nine, she would have posted a -3.32 Z Score, and that would have been the second best in the tournament’s history.

Here are the 25 best performances, measured by Z Score, in the history of the U.S. Women ‘s Open: